Combined room heater and water heater



United States Patent 2,998,003 COMBINED ROOM HEATER AND WATER HEATER Elic Lee Grooms, Jr., Fort Worth, Tex., assignor to Superior Standards Manufacturing Company of Texas, Fort Worth, Tex., a corporation of Texas Filed Aug. 11, 1958, Ser. No. 754,233 Claims. (Cl. 126-101) This invention relates to heaters and has reference to a combined room heater and water heater which requires a relatively small floor area for its operation. A particular use of the invention is for heating the interiors of house trailers where living areas are limited.

An object of the invention is to provide a combined room heater and water heater arranged in a single casing in a manner so as to occupy relatively little floor space.

Another object is to provide a unique combustion chamber having a relatively large heating surface, yet one which occupies a relatively small space.

A particular object is to provide a combustion chamber which is unusually efiicient in its operation.

A further object is to provide a combined room heater and water heater wherein the action of one heater augments the action of the other.

These and other objects will become apparent from the following description and the accompanying drawing, wherein:

FIGURE 1 is a broken side elevation of a combined room and water heater embodying the features of the invention.

FIGURE 2 is a broken front elevation of the heater shown in FIGURE 1 and illustrating the relative positions and means providing coaction between the water heater and the room heater.

FIGURE 3 is a vertical sectional view of the room heater taken across its narrow transverse dimension.

FIGURE 4 is a vertical sectional view of the room heater taken across its wide transverse dimension.

FIGURE 5 is a broken perspective view of the lower portion of the room heater and showing the flow of air currents therein, and

FIGURE 6 is a broken perspective view of the upper portion of room heater combustion chamber and showing the down draft air current divider comprising a part thereof.

In the drawing, the numeral 10 generally designates a rectilinear vertical outer casing 10 having front and rear walls 11 and 12, side walls 13 and 14, a top 15 and a bottom 16. As viewed from the front, FIGURE 2, there is a room heater in one side of the casing 10, adjacent but spaced from a side wall 14, and next to the room heater there is a vertical cylindrical water heater 18. The room heater 17 is comprised of a narrow vertical housing 19, the greatest transverse dimension of which is nearly equal to the width of the outer casing 10. Within the room heater case 19 there is a combustion chamber 20 which is rectangular in transverse section but convergingly tapered toward its up er end. The lower end of the combustion chamber 20 is spaced from the bottom 21 of the housing 19 where it is secured by narrow flanges 20a to the vertical walls 19a of the housing, as by welding. The space beneath the lower end of the combustion chamber 20 and above the bottom 21 thereof accommodates a burner 22 extending substantially across the greater transverse dimension of the housing 17. A louvered door 23 in the outer case 10 supplies air to the burner 22.

As particularly shown in FIGURES 4 and 5, one vertical end wall of the combustion chamber 20 is spaced from the adjacent wall of the heater housing 19 so as p 2,998,003 Patented Aug. 29, 1961 ice to provide a down draft air channel 24. A hollow wedge shaped divider 25 mounted on the upper end of the combustion chamber 20 extends across the housing. The ends of the divider are rectangular, as at 26 and 27, and communicate with upwardly directed vent stacks 28 and 29. Between the vent stacks 28 and 29, there is a housed fan 30 having its discharge directed downwardly into the upper end of the housing 19. By reason of the locations of the divider 25, the tapered surface of the combustion chamber 20 and the down draft channel 24, the air from the fan 30 is effectively heated prior to passing through discharge ports 31 into a plenum 32 beneath the water heater 18. A grill 33 in the side of the casing 10 discharges hot air from the plenum into the room to be heated, or the plenum may be connected with a duct, not shown. A louvered opening 34 in the casing 10 just above the plenum 32 supplies air to the water heater 18, and it will be noted in FIGURES l and 2 that the water heater rests on the upper surface of the top Wall 35 of the plenum 32.

Above the water heater there is a horizontal partition 36 of sheets metal which fits around the upper portion of the room heater housing 19. There is a T-shaped draft diverter 37 above the casing 10, the arms of which diverter are connected with the previously described vent stacks 28 and 29 and with the vent stack 38 which extends upwardly from the water heater 18 through the horizontal partition 36. Other details shown on the drawing include a motor 39 for driving the fan 30, an access door 40 in the front of the casing 10, air inlet louver 41 in the casing 10 above the partition 36, and a flue 42 atop the draft diverter 37.

In operation, air is drawn inwardly through the upper louvers 41 by means of the fan 30 and is then directed downwardly through the room heater housing 19, over the relatively tall and wide combustion chamber 20 and thence to one side and downwardly through the down draft channel 24, into the plenum 32 and outwardly through grill 33. The horizontal partition 36 entraps radiant heat from the room heater housing 19 and thus augments the heating eifect of the burner, not shown, of the water heater 18. Since the water heater 18 rests on and above the plenum 32 additional radiant heat augments the operation of the water heater 18. It is also pointed out that by reason of the location of the water heater atop the plenum, considerable floor space is saved by reason of the present construction and arrangement.

The invention is not limited to the exemplary construction herein shown and described, but may be made in various ways within the scope of the appended claims.

What is claimed is:

l. A combined room heater and water heater comprising a vertical casing having a side wall, means forming an air inlet in the upper portion of said casing, a room heater within said casing adjacent but spaced from said side wall, said room heater being comprised of a narrow vertical housing, the greatest transverse dimension of which is nearly equal to the width of said side wall, fan means for drawing air from the inlet to the top of the heater housing, said room heater including a wall means forming a combustion chamber therein and extending upwardly in said housing, a burner within the lower portion of said combustion chamber, means including a louvered door in said outer casing and communicating with said burner to supply air thereto, a water heater within said casing adjacent said room heater, wall means forming a plenum in said casing beneath said water heater, means forming an outlet through said casing from said plenum, and means communicating the lower end of said housing of said room heater with said plenum.

2. The construction defined in claim 1, and wherein 3 the combustion chamber within said room heater housing is spaced from an end wall thereof providing a down draft channel substantially along the side thereof.

3..:The;'construction defined in claim l,..and including azhorizontal partition :Within said casing above said water heater and aroundthe upperportion of said room heater. 4.. Thexconstruction defined in claim 2 and wherein the lower end of said down draft channel extends to the bottom of said casing where it communicates with said plenum.

5. The construction defined in claim 2, and including a Wedge shaped divider on the upper end of the combustion chamber of said room heater.

References Cited in the file of this patent 'IUNITED STATES PATENTS 2,277,201 Belt Mar. 24, 1942 2,734,500 Myers Feb. 14, 1956 2,792,826 Kilbury May 21, 1957 Handley May 6, 1958 

